This bill requires every nursing home and residential care home to establish a grievance policy to ensure that residents' grievances are resolved in a timely manner. It also allows these facilities to establish a grievance committee to (1) review and suggest changes, as necessary, to the policy and (2) resolve residents' grievances in a timely manner.

Under the bill, the grievance committee consists of two employees appointed by the facility's administrator and one resident elected annually by the residents.

The bill is unclear as to whether homes must establish a grievance committee. Initially, the bill allows homes to establish these committees. But, it later requires the grievance policy to allow residents to choose to have the committee resolve their grievances, which appears to require the creation of the grievance committee.

If a resident chooses not to have the committee resolve the grievance, the bill requires the facility's administrator to resolve the grievance in a timely manner (presumably, the administrator must also do this at facilities that do not establish a committee).

EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2013

BACKGROUND

Nursing Home Patients' Bill of Rights

The state's nursing home patient's bill of rights grants residents the right to have a facility make prompt efforts to resolve their grievances, including those involving other patients' behavior (CGS § 19a-550).